Kenninji Gion Maruyama

Chef Maruyama Kasakura is a septuagenarian chef at the top of his game. Born the son of a fishmonger, he is a Kyoto native with many decades of experience with the city’s food culture. He’s such an authority on local cuisine that he’s been invited to feature on Japanese TV shows in the past, and both of his current restaurants have held two Michelin stars for over a decade! This is in part down to his solid knowledge of traditional Japanese culture, with expertise in tea ceremony and flower arrangement. However, the main reason for the restaurant’s success is clearly the fantastic cooking — forever presenting multi-sensory gourmet experiences which present traditional Kyoto cuisine with a mix of tradition and innovation. There are individual charcoal grills in each of the private rooms, so you can enjoy watching seasonal meat, fish, and vegetables grilled to perfection and served straight from the flames. Lunch, dinner, and full omakase courses are available, and there’s even a children’s set course for those dining as a family.